Here is one of many ways to interpret the meaning of the card (as given by Curtiss in XIX):


The 9th card of the Tarot is called the Hermit. In it we find expressed all the ideas of Initiation, for here we have a picture of an old man who, in spite of the fact that as he walks he leans upon a Staff, nevertheless is strong and upright, with eyes wide open and undimmed, looking steadily ahead. He is wrapped in a long Mantle and in his uplifted right hand carries a Lantern.
The symbology of this card is plain. The age of the Hermit denotes not senility, but the strength and vigor of maturity, hence experience, discretion and Wisdom. The Staff upon which he leans is the Staff of the Patriarchs or that divine strength upon which he has learned to lean. It is the power of the 1 Life which every Initiate must gain through complete mastery of the forces of nature. It is also the Magic Wand with which he performs his miracles and by whose use he proves to the world that he has passed the Great Initiation of number 9. It is the power of the 1 Life like a staff running through and supporting all. It is Aaron's Rod of Power which will never fail him, Aaron symbolizing the priestly attributes through which the Initiate serves before the throne of the Great Law. It is the Shepherd's Crook with which he can guide the straying and uplift the fallen. It is that which he has tested and proved, for during all his long and toilsome journey to the gate of Initiation, which now stands open before him, it has never failed him.
The Rod has 7 knots or rings which are the 7 steps of purification. The lighted Lamp he holds high above his head is the Light of Knowledge, the Lamp of Truth or the "Word," i. e., "Thy word shall be a light to my path, and a lamp unto my feet." It is the inner illumination of 1 who has come off victor. Just as in his earlier steps the Light shone above him as the Star of Initiation, which he had to follow over deserts, morasses and desolate regions without losing sight of it, even though at times the dark mists of earth hid it from view, so it is still the Light from the 1 Master, his own Immortal Self, of which we read: "The light from the One Master, the one unfading light of Spirit, shoots its effulgent beams on the Disciple from the very first. Its rays thread through the thick dark clouds of matter. Now here, now there, these rays illumine it, like sun-sparks light the earth through the thick foliage of the jungle growth. But, O Disciple, unless the flesh is passive, head cool, the Soul as firm and pure as flaming diamond, the radiance will not reach the chamber (the center of Spiritual Consciousness), its sunlight will not warm the heart."1 {1 The Voice of the Silence.}
The Hermit has let the Light reach the chamber of his heart. He has also made it shine in the chamber or center of Spiritual Consciousness. Hence the symbol of the Light being placed in the lantern, i. e., no longer fitful like a distant star, but in his conscious grasp, ready to guide him every step of the way.
The Mantle which envelops him and partially hides the lighted Lamp is the Mantle of Discretion with which the Initiate must enwrap himself and shield the full Light of his Lamp from the eyes of the profane. For every Soul must find the Light within himself ere he can recognize it in another or even bear its full effulgence.
This card balances the 7th and 8th cards, the Victor in his chariot and the Mother-power of Love which holds the scales of Justice. It expresses the protection of the Initiates who, altho few in numbers as compared with the great mass of humanity, are still the Protectors of Humanity. They stand like a guardian wall around mankind. Like watchmen in a tower, their Lamps held high, they are ready to fly to help and succor every child of man who cries out for Light and help, if the light and help are really needed. But even this help is given wisely, for there are cases in which it is best that the child should learn to help itself, even as a loving mother may wisely allow her babe to cry itself to sleep, rather than fly to it when she knows that it needs nothing but sleep. They remain upon the hilltops throughout the long nights of spiritual darkness, like faithful shepherds watching over their sleeping sheep, with their Staff ever ready to reach out to 1 who is slipping and falling, its crook ready to lift 1 who is torn and bleeding, and their Mantle of Charity ready to enwrap those who are suffering from the bitter storms of passion and desire. But dear student, they are ever wrapped in the Mantle of Discretion, hence only those who Dare, Do and Keep Silent can ever see the Light of the Hermit's Lamp.
THE 10TH TAROT CARD, The Wheel of Life.
The 10th card of the Tarot depicts a wheel, called the Wheel of Life or the Wheel of Fortune. The word tarot itself means a wheel or something that rotates, its beginning and end in 1, or endless time in eternity. "The importance of the picture of the Orb which named all wheels is further shown in the fact that human language was made on this Ball, Circle and Wheel. Thus ORB-IT names 'the going of the Orb', and even the rut in the road made by the wheel is called 'Orbita' because the rut shows the route, rute, ruis or way, or road of the Wheel. Any schoolboy can understand the general plan for the making of words on the Sun. The Rota or Wheel, named everything Rotary and going in rota-t-ion, and that which was attributed to the action or causings of the Sun, such as rolling, rotting, roasting."1 {1 The Jarvis Letters, xi.}
This Wheel or M is pivoted upon the upper end of the upright 1 while at the base are 2 entwined serpents, representing the 1 Life manifesting as duality upon earth. This Wheel is sometimes represented as suspended between 2 uprights expressing the same symbology, but more crudely, for the Wheel of Life to be a perfect number 10 must be supported by the 1 Life, yet must find its base supported in the balanced pair of opposites, the 2 serpents.
Poised with outspread wings above the top of the Wheel is the Sphinx, the sign of calm, equilibrated Wisdom and Perfect justice. The figure has the paws of a lion and holds a sword in its right paw. It is crowned with the symbol of Venus. On the right side of the wheel we see Anubis, the Egyptian dog-faced god—the symbol of good—ascending, bearing in his right paw the Caduceus and having on his head the symbol of Mercury. On the left side of the wheel we see Typhon, the Egyptian god of evil and destruction, descending with a trident in his hand. These 2 figures on the Wheel indicate that good is ever aspiring and ascending, while evil is ever fleeing before it and descending into darkness and disintegration.
The balanced and reclining sphinx represents the supremacy and command which Wisdom has over both good and evil. Anubis and Typhon represent the opposition of good and evil and indicate that evil must descend and be disintegrated that its force may rise and manifest as good at the next upward turn of the Wheel. It also presents the idea that good must triumph through aspiration and incessant equilibration. The Wheel is the original M which we considered in the beginning as the Garden of Eden in which infant humanity started out on its "Cycle of Necessity." But now the Wheel has become the Law as Karma, "The wheel of the good law which grinds by night and day."


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Note added at 2003-04-11 06:21:44 (GMT)
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Sorry I\'ve copied occasionally another arcana\'s (The Wheel\'s) divination meaning. Omit it unless you need it.



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Note added at 2003-04-11 06:41:33 (GMT)
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And here is the picture of the card (L\'Ermite)

http://www.geocities.com/mirkwood222/ow4.html